1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of vending machines and, more particularly, to a lock housing for a vending machine having first and second ends, each of which is secured to an internal structural member of the vending machine.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In general, it is known to secure a main door of a vending machine with a lock having a fixed lock housing. Typically, the lock housing is secured to a structural member of the vending machine. With this arrangement, unauthorized access to commodities stored within the machine is prevented, thus reducing the occurrence of pilfering and the like.
There are a wide variety of lock arrangements currently in use. Manufactures employ barrel locks and pad-locks to secure the commodities contained within the vending machine. Still other mechanisms include a barrel lock in combination with a spinner and threaded rod assembly. In accordance with this arrangement, release of the barrel lock enables the spinner to rotate a threaded rod. The threaded rod passes from the spinner through the main door and engages a lock housing secured to internal structure of the vending machine. More specifically, the lock housing includes an associated threaded bore adapted to engage the threaded rod. Once the threaded rod is clear of the bore, the main door is free to open thereby providing access to internal machine areas.
Typically, the lock housing is cantilevered from a wall or other structural member of the machine. As such, forces applied to the lock housing are only supported at one end. Accordingly, extreme loading of the door may cause the lock housing to fail, and thus enable unauthorized access to the commodities stored within the machine. In the event that the lock housing does not fail on a first attempt, high loads applied to the cantilevered housing will create structural defects in the housing material.
Despite the known locking mechanisms, there exists a need for a vending machine lock having a lock housing secured to structural components of the vending machine. More specifically, there exists a need for a lock housing having first and second ends, each of which is independently secured to the vending machine such that stress associated with excessive loading of the main door is distributed throughout the lock housing and not focused at a particular point along the housing.